The Chaotic Reef District.

HUMMM!

The melodious, mighty song of a whale echoed.

"I am Moby Dick, King of the White Whales. People of Yaoguang... all of you must die!"

The white whale’s Divine Sense vibrated through the air, producing a deep, chilling voice.

It spread in all directions, carried on the sea breeze!

And as its voice boomed, the surrounding seawater began to churn as if it were boiling.

SPLASH, SPLASH.

Innumerable ghostly blue tentacles, formed from seawater and Demon Power, rose from the ocean’s surface!

The myriad tentacles dragged at and coiled around the ships’ hulls and sails, forcing the spirit ships to slow drastically!

Then...

White Whale Moby Dick, its colossal, mountain-like body, rammed straight into them!

BOOM!

A first-rank spirit ship belonging to the Cyan Profound Sect, inscribed with the ’Cyan Jade Lotus’ insignia.

Under the force of White Whale Moby Dick’s impact, the ship’s hull violently caved in and shattered, splintering into pieces!

In an instant, the entire spirit ship sank to the bottom of the sea, becoming a brand-new shipwreck!

Seeing this,

the spirit ships from both the Immortal City’s side and the Cyan Profound Sect’s side were terrified and accelerated with all their might!

"Dammit!"

"Push the Array to full power! Get away from this monster!"

Xiao Sheng’s face was ashen as he stared at the white whale’s form in horror.

Fortunately, the second-rank spirit ship he was on was relatively fast.

For a short time, they were safe.

But if this continued, they would sooner or later be caught by this third-rank Demon King!

’And...’

’I wonder how Zhaoxia is doing?’ Xiao Sheng worried.

Navasen, in his Deer Demon form, had nearly killed Zhaoxia with a single sneak attack.

Even though Zhaoxia had managed to save his life with the Substitute Secret Technique,

the situation was still dire, with only a slim chance of survival.

RUMBLE!

As he was thinking, the roar of thunder interrupted Xiao Sheng’s thoughts.

He looked up to see dense, dark clouds rolling in ahead of the spirit ship!

"A storm?!" Xiao Sheng said, his face paling.

If they sailed into the storm without furling the sails, there was a high chance the ship would be destroyed and everyone on board killed.

But if they furled the sails and slowed down, they would face the predatory White Whale Demon King—also a dead end...

"What do we do?"

"Is leaving it to fate our only option?" Xiao Sheng gave a bitter smile.

SPLASH.

The ink-black storm clouds swallowed the fleet of spirit ships...

...

However, outside the storm,

White Whale Moby Dick suddenly froze, halting its pursuit!

"This is..."

"This storm... it’s different..."

A trace of shock and uncertainty seeped into its projected Divine Sense!

As a beast of the ocean, White Whale Moby Dick had weathered at least eighty storms, if not a hundred.

However, in the storms of the past, the will it sensed was vast and violent,

but it held no malice. For a sea demon like itself, it was even somewhat nurturing!

But now, the malice, greed, and arrogance were so tangible,

they mixed with the sea breeze, rushing toward it like sharp knives pressed against its eyes!

"This..."

A hint of fear appeared in the white whale’s eyes.

But after a few dozen breaths,

its ferocious demonic nature, and its hatred for the people of Yaoguang, took over!

The massive Demon King’s body charged headfirst into the storm!

...

Inside the storm.

A first-rank spirit ship, inscribed with the ’Cyan Jade Lotus’, pitched and rolled violently.

"What’s going on?"

Inside the cabin, Li Hengyan paced back and forth, his expression dark and his mood foul.

He turned his head, his gaze heavy, and stared at the Cyan Profound Sect cultivator before him.

"So... that old bastard Zhaoxia was ambushed and seriously wounded?"

"The fleet scattered in disarray, and there’s a third-rank Demon King full of killing intent on our tail?!"

Li Hengyan was so furious he started to laugh.

But paired with his expression, the smile was utterly menacing!

"Mr. Li, that is correct..."

"We ask that you come forward and take command of the spirit ship..."

The Cyan Profound Sect cultivator’s face was grim.

This first-rank spirit ship had poor performance compared to the rest of the fleet and wasn’t considered important.

Therefore, it had been specifically chosen to ’imprison’ Li Hengyan.

But now, the situation was desperate.

He had no choice but to ask Li Hengyan, a Late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, to come out and take control.

"Haaa..."

Li Hengyan rubbed his temples and let out a long breath, calming himself.

A glimmer of clarity appeared in his eyes, as well as... joy?

"I understand."

"Now, go gather the crew..."

As a Late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, Li Hengyan was arrogant, but he was no fool!

After a moment of thought, he realized that the failure of this whale-hunting expedition and the chaos that followed...

might not be a bad thing for him at all!

After all, because of his prior ’confinement for reflection’,

Li Hengyan could logically shirk all responsibility for the plan’s failure.

On the contrary, if he could rally some of the fleet after this rout and return to the sect, it would be a great accomplishment!

"As long as I can return to the sect..."

"That old bastard Zhaoxia, Su Ye, Xiao Sheng, the Luo Family... all of you will pay the price!"

’Zhaoxia acted alone and arbitrarily. Xiao Sheng sheltered Donglong the Luo Clan, defied the main sect, and failed to cooperate, leading to the plan’s failure...’

Li Hengyan silently calculated, refining his excuses.

He pushed open the door and walked out onto the deck.

And then, suddenly, Li Hengyan’s expression froze.

"What... is that?"

CRASH!

Amidst the vast storm, a towering black ship sailed forth, its pitch-black sails billowing in the wind!

This spirit ship seemed completely unaffected by the storm, its speed incredibly fast!

What was even more terrifying was, Li Hengyan’s eyes were sharp, and he saw that the deck of this spirit ship was crowded with bizarre crewmembers with strange limbs and twisted bodies!

A black ship with black sails, filled with monsters, like a spirit ship sailing out of hell itself.

"Wait... this ship is?"

Li Hengyan’s brow furrowed abruptly, his face a mask of utter terror!

"The Ghostly Flood Dragon!"

HUMM.

At the pitch-black bow, amidst the crowd of bizarre monsters,

a handsome, sharp-eyed youth in a black robe seemed to sense his gaze.

He smiled, turned his head, and looked at Li Hengyan.

Then, he raised a hand and drew it across his own neck in a ’beheading’ gesture!

"Su Ye!" Li Hengyan stood frozen in place, his entire body turning to ice.

His mind, as if glued shut, instantly went blank!

Only a single thought echoed endlessly!

"He’s here to kill me!"

"You guessed right," Su Ye smiled and snapped his fingers.

HUMMM!

On the ship’s hull,

crimson Array patterns suddenly lit up!

Living souls shrieked as gouts of blood-flame roared forth!

In an instant, the deadly blood-flames blasted the entire spirit ship Li Hengyan was on into smithereens!

"Have a safe trip," Su Ye said with a wave.

Then,

the currents, like the sharpest of blades, pulverized the corpses, destroying all evidence.

They also gathered up the Storage Rings and delivered them neatly into Su Ye’s hand.

However, Su Ye didn’t divert his attention to take inventory of the Storage Rings.

Instead, he focused his gaze, peering into the distance.

"It’s here..."

The melodious song of a whale echoed.

The white whale!